Mapping southern Puget Sound delta fronts after 2001 earthquake

Abstract

A moment magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck southern Puget Sound (Figure 1) on February 28, 2001, causing an estimated $0.7–$1.4 billion in damages to buildings and roadways in the region [Williams et al., 2001]. The earthquake source was 52 km deep, and the epicenter was located close to the Nisqually River delta in the same location as the epicenter of the magnitude 7.1 earthquake of 1949 (http://www.geophys.washington.edu/seis/pnsn/info_ general/). These deep earthquakes occurred in the eastward-dipping subducting slab of the Juan de Fuca plate and typically caused less damage than shallower, crustal events of the same magnitude. Details of the seismology and effects of the earthquake can be found at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/activity/latest/ eq_01_02_28.html.